Dilemma: Earned Excellent Credit - Purchaseing a Home, but Itching to Open a Highly Coveted Card

Dilemma: Earned Excellent Credit - Purchaseing a Home, but Itching to Open a Highly Coveted Card

So after hammering away at my debt and working on my credit for years, I've finally achieved 780+ across all 3 credit bureaus... an achievement I thought was once only a dream. I can not tell you how ecstatic I am to have achieved this goal (started in the low 600s). Now originally, my goal was to simply achieve "Very Good" credit status to strengthen my mortgage application, however by constantly raising the bar...I find myself in a position receiving credit offers for cards that I once only imagined of seeing in my wallet...

Here's the situation... I plan to apply for a home loan as early as August (4 months down the line) and figure (perhaps, hopeful thinking) that I can take the hit to my credit score now if I'm going to go through with this. My concern is how hard that hit is going to impact my credit after getting dinged for a credit inquiry and reducing my average account age. Credit Karma simulates a 8 point deduction in my score, but I don't entirely trust their calculations...

At this time, I only have 2 credit lines open with one aged to over 1 year and the other at over 5. Additionally, I opened a student loan 3 months ago and another I'll open in June.

Ultimately, I find myself asking if it's worth owning that hard-earned coveted CC in exchange for a hit that could be perceived negatively towards a mortgage application down the line...

With a thin file; you'll take a nosedive if any new accounts appear. Best advice is to not rock the boat. Wait until you close on the house and keys are in hand. then apply for everything; massive app spree because at that point it wont matter and more accounts to farm will leave you with a thicker file down the road. Those prime cards will still be there AFTER you close on the house.

This is sound logic... now I do have credit card history dating back 10+ years in addition to a car loan, however those accounts have been closed or paid off. In your opinion, is this still too thin to rock the boat for a trophy card?

itsgonnahappen wrote:This is sound logic... now I do have credit card history dating back 10+ years in addition to a car loan, however those accounts have been closed or paid off. In your opinion, is this still too thin to rock the boat for a trophy card?

Yep. The ding from a new account can last for 6 months... the ding for inquiries will last for 12 months. You may have to have multiple pulls throughout the mortgage process... on my opinion its better to wait til after the mortgage and then go "all in" for every card.you've ever wanted. Mortgage; then super spree. I did this and got amex; chase amazon with NPSL; ge amazon; nfcu with 22k limit. Was declined several cards due to mortgage inquiries; but my post mortgage spree was.very successful.

itsgonnahappen wrote:This is sound logic... now I do have credit card history dating back 10+ years in addition to a car loan, however those accounts have been closed or paid off. In your opinion, is this still too thin to rock the boat for a trophy card?

Yep. The ding from a new account can last for 6 months... the ding for inquiries will last for 12 months. You may have to have multiple pulls throughout the mortgage process... on my opinion its better to wait til after the mortgage and then go "all in" for every card.you've ever wanted. Mortgage; then super spree. I did this and got amex; chase amazon with NPSL; ge amazon; nfcu with 22k limit. Was declined several cards due to mortgage inquiries; but my post mortgage spree was.very successful.

+1 to what everyone else said. Keep in mind, as you indicated, you've got that student loan and the 2nd one that you're going to open. That will also create a ding, you're going to lose points with that new loan. I would suggest mortgage shopping NOW, get with a trusted broker and see where you are interest rate-wise. With that excellent score NOW, you'll get the best possible rate. Get it now, see what you can do to lock in a rate, then FIND THAT HOUSE! Now is the time to strike for the house. Depending on what real estate market you're in, it could take a long time to find the house you want, or you could find it right away. You'll be surprised how quickly 4 months goes by when shopping for real estate. And once you find it, the process seems to just drag on and on. Mortgage lenders will also pull your credit reports (all 3) several times during the process, to include just before closing. Get going with it now! Those cards you want? They're going to be there when this is all over, and they may be offering better deals in 4-5 months. You can apply for the primo cards AFTER you've closed but before the mortgage starts reporting.

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FICO, myFICO, Score Watch, The score lenders use, and The Score That Matters are trademarks or registered trademarks of Fair Isaac Corporation.
Equifax Credit Report is a trademark of Equifax, Inc. and its affiliated companies.
Many factors affect your FICO Scores and the interest rates you may receive. Fair Isaac is not a credit repair organization as defined under federal or state law, including the Credit Repair Organizations Act. Fair Isaac does not provide "credit repair" services or advice or assistance regarding "rebuilding" or "improving" your credit record, credit history or credit rating.
FTC's website on credit.

IMPORTANT INFORMATION: All FICO® Score products made available on myFICO.com include a FICO® Score 8, along with additional FICO® Score versions. Your lender or insurer may use a different FICO® Score than the versions you receive from myFICO, or another type of credit score altogether. Learn more

FICO, myFICO, Score Watch, The score lenders use, and The Score That Matters are trademarks or registered trademarks of Fair Isaac Corporation. Equifax Credit Report is a trademark of Equifax, Inc. and its affiliated companies. Many factors affect your FICO Score and the interest rates you may receive. Fair Isaac is not a credit repair organization as defined under federal or state law, including the Credit Repair Organizations Act. Fair Isaac does not provide "credit repair" services or advice or assistance regarding "rebuilding" or "improving" your credit record, credit history or credit rating. FTC's website on credit.